Renowned Nigerian human-rights lawyer and Lead Counsel to the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for nominating General Christopher Gwabin Musa (Rtd.), former Chief of Defence Staff, as the new Minister of Defence.
Ejiofor made the commendation in a statement released on Wednesday titled:
“Midweek Musing,The Resurrection of Strategic Sanity: The Nomination of General Christopher Gwabin Musa (Rtd.) — A Perfect Square Peg for a Square Hole, and a Long-Awaited Balm for a Bleeding Nation.”
He praised General Musa as a man who “stands out like a lighthouse in a raging storm,” adding that his nomination signals a decisive shift toward restoring national security and stability.
Ejiofor further expressed optimism about what he described as the “formidable alignment” between the retired Chief of Defence Staff and Mr. Adeola Ajayi, the newly appointed Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS). With both men at the helm of security affairs, he said, long-suffering Nigerians “may finally exhale,” as “the days of marauders, jihadists, and terror entrepreneurs are numbered.”
According to Ejiofor:“At a time when many Nigerians have grown accustomed to wincing at federal appointments, the nomination of General Musa stands out as the most sensible decision the Federal Government has made in recent memory. The public’s jubilant reaction on the streets and across social media speaks volumes. Nigerians recognize a competent man when they see one.”
Recalling Musa’s tenure as Chief of Defence Staff, Ejiofor noted that he zealously coordinated military operations that “dislodged, degraded, and dismantled some of the most entrenched terrorist networks on the African continent.
” Under Musa’s command, he emphasized, ISWAP, Boko Haram, and the hydra-headed banditry cartels “felt the true weight of a Nigerian state finally determined to survive.”
Ejiofor added that General Musa’s appointment represents a rare moment of strategic clarity and a long-overdue step toward securing a nation that has endured years of violent extremism and unchecked criminality.
The statement reads in full: " In an era where national decisions often oscillate between the bewildering and the utterly incomprehensible, the nomination, and the widely expected inevitable appointment, of General Christopher Gwabin Musa (Rtd.), erstwhile Chief of Defence Staff, as Minister of Defence stands out like a lighthouse in a raging storm.
To the discerning mind, this single act reads almost like an institutional apology for the earlier premature retirement of a man whose monumental achievements in military leadership remain too glaring to be waved away by bureaucratic caprice.
Political analysts and those who possess the rare gift of reading between governmental lines remain acutely aware of the extraordinary feats General Musa accomplished during his stewardship of Nigeria’s military defence architecture. He was not a man of noise, he was a man of results.
As Chief of Defence Staff, he zealously led coordinated operations that dislodged, degraded, and dismantled some of the most entrenched terrorist networks on the continent. Under his command, ISWAP, Boko Haram, and the hydra-headed banditry cartels felt the true weight of a Nigerian state finally determined to survive.
Yes, scattered pockets of insecurity lingered, predictably so in a nation still grappling with internal sabotage and unpatriotic fifth columnists, but Musa maintained an extraordinary grip on the architecture of national defence. His leadership drastically reduced casualty figures, curtailed internal leaks, and neutralised enemies of the state who operated both in the bush and, disturbingly, within the corridors of power.
Not many Nigerians know that General Musa is a devoted Anglican, a faith I proudly share as a Knight of Saint Christopher. His spiritual discipline reflects in his public conduct: incorruptible, unassuming, and unfailingly civil.
He is admired across ethnic, religious, and social boundaries. Rising to the pinnacle of his career without scandal is no mean feat in today’s Nigeria. His professionalism, focus, and results-driven approach remain models for the institution he once led.
THE CONSEQUENCE OF LOSING A SHIELD: WHEN A RETIRED GENERAL’S ABSENCE BECAME A SIGNAL FOR CHAOS
Barely had General Musa taken a breath in retirement when hell’s gates seemed to swing open. Terrorists, bandits, and kidnappers, those same marauders he had hounded into irrelevance, suddenly found renewed confidence, as if celebrating the exit of the one man who kept them perpetually on the run.
The resurgence of kidnappings, mass killings, abductions, and rural invasions is not a coincidence; it is a troubling reminder that internal saboteurs still operate dangerously close to the seat of power. Their press statements, security summits, and public condemnations remain nothing more than theatrics designed to pacify a traumatised population while shielding the enablers of terror within government circles.
It is against this backdrop that the loud, reckless audacity of the likes of Sheikh Gumi continues to insult the nation’s collective sensibilities. His unrestrained fraternisation with bandits, his boastful proclamations, and his unsolicited “policy recommendations” to the Federal Government boldly assert his delusion of being above the law. But I can assure him, and his ilk, that a new sheriff is indeed returning to town, and this sheriff understands both the terrain and the enemy.
With the formidable alignment of Rtd. CDS General Musa and DG Ajayi, the long-suffering citizens of this country may finally exhale. The days of marauders, jihadists, and terror entrepreneurs are numbered.
At a time when many Nigerians have grown accustomed to wincing at federal appointments, the nomination of General Musa stands out as the most sensible decision the Federal Government has made in recent memory. The public’s jubilant reaction, both on the streets and across social media, speaks volumes. Nigerians recognise a competent man when they see one.
And yet, one cannot help but raise an eyebrow: are these the same decision-makers who also nominated Reno Omokri for an ambassadorial posting? The irony is almost poetic. Ambassadors are meant to be image-makers for the nation. Pray, what image shall Reno project? His chronic ethnic bigotry? His divisive rhetoric? His incessant vilification of the Igbo? His shameless denigration of entire tribes as “criminals” and “hungry people”?
One wonders what foreign dignitaries will be treated to under his watch: a lecture on why Peter Obi comes from the “most neglected tribe in Nigeria”? Or a diplomatic briefing on why millions of Igbo people do not deserve national respect?
If the Senate still retains an iota of institutional independence, Omokri’s nomination deserves nothing short of outright rejection.
At this critical juncture in our national life, when bloodshed has become a grim backdrop to daily existence and hope appears increasingly fragile, the anticipated appointment of General Christopher Gwabin Musa (Rtd.) offers a rare moment of collective optimism."
The nation watches.
The nation expects.
The nation prays.
And indeed, the nation deserves a man of Musa’s pedigree, courage, and unimpeachable integrity.
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